Booming car stereos aren't just infuriating - they're dangerous

By Rajeev Syal

12:01AM GMT 28 Mar 2004

Careful with the volume button: loud music decreases a driver's ability to react to sudden movements and make decisions, according to the latest research.

The study, by scientists in Canada, found that reaction times diminished by up to 20 per cent when a person was subjected to loud volume, a potentially fatal delay for a motorist driving at even moderate speeds.

The finding has prompted concern among driving organisations that young men who drive with music booming from their powerful in-car hi-fi systems could be causing an increasing number of accidents.

Edmund King, the executive director of the RAC Foundation, the motoring organisation, said that the findings confirmed many drivers' suspicions. "This research suggests that loud music is not good for the driver or other road users, and is actually a real risk on Britain's roads.

"We get a lot of complaints about loud cars and their annoying drivers and this research seems to explain why," he said.

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The study, conducted at Memorial University, Newfoundland, Canada, examined the reactions of 10 people who were asked to complete tasks each day for a month while being subjected to different noise levels.

The lowest sound level used in the experiments was 53 decibels - the equivalent to an office - and the noisiest was 95 decibels - the equivalent to standing near a fast moving lorry. By measuring physical and mental abilities over hour-long periods, researchers found that the time it took to complete tasks that required decision-making increased by an average of 20 per cent at 95 decibels. At office levels, it was five per cent.

The typical car stereo has a maximum volume of about 110 decibels, although the loudest can reach more than 170 decibels. Duane Button, the scientist who conducted the experiments, said that the time periods involved were just fractions of a second, but could make a significant difference while driving.

"Drivers have people and vehicles and pedestrians coming at them all the time. If they lose 0.35 seconds because of their loud music, it is the difference between an accident or safety," said Mr Button.

Damian Green, the shadow transport secretary, said that the Government should commission its own study of the impact of high volume levels on safety. He also called for curbs on the maximum volume permitted in cars.

"The Government needs to take the issue of volume levels and car safety by the scruff of the neck and deal with it," he said.

A spokesman for the Department of Transport said that officials would examine the Canadian report when it was published.

Drivers with booming car stereos dismissed the findings yesterday. Richard Bladon, 20, from Wolverhampton, West Midlands, regularly plays dance music at 148 decibels - the equivalent of standing 10 yards from a landing jet - from his car.

The computer programmer admitted to turning up his £4,000 stereo "pretty loud" and to being thrilled when other drivers looked around from their cars.

"I have stopped at traffic lights and watched people in the next car turn around as they wonder why their dashboards are vibrating," he said.

Mr Bladon insisted that there were worse habits on the road than playing loud music. "People should not play their music so loud that it disturbs people going about their daily business. But playing music a little louder than normal is not as bad as drinking before, or telephoning while driving a car," he said.

There are more than 7,000 registered car stereo enthusiasts in Britain according to TalkAudio, a website that serves young men who are prepared to spend thousands of pounds on amplifiers, speakers and cable leads.

Loud music has previously been blamed for contributing to fatal car accidents. Ronald Myers, a coroner in Wigan, Lancashire, said that loud music played by Nicola Rothwell, 18, contributed to a 1997 crash that killed her and two companions. "I do hope that parents will take heed and hand out a warning to youngsters of the possible dangers too loud a volume of music in a car can be," he said.

Sony, the electronics giant, was accused this year of encouraging anti-social behaviour in its advertisements for car stereos.

One Sony magazine promotion was banned by the Advertising Standards Authority for selling amplifiers with the slogan: "Maybe you like your music relaxing. Or maybe you like to shatter greenhouses and set off car alarms."

Kevin Clinton, the head of road safety at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, said that the study confirmed suspicions that loud noise could increase the likelihood of an accident. "Most research that has shown how using a mobile phone while driving can be a distraction has indicated that listening to the radio is not a problem.

"However, listening to very loud music can be distracting. If the noise in a car is too loud, it may stop you hearing other things such as traffic approaching."